1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mat for a frame, for example an archival frame, such as an oil painting or water color painting frame.
2. Description of Related Art
A known mat of an archival frame is usually made of a plate of timber, such as a veneer or cryptomeria (Japanese cedar) or a sheet of pasteboard, which is cut or punched into a predetermined shape having a rectangular or square mat window corresponding to a size of an artwork, such as a painting or poster to be mounted in the frame.
In such a known mat for an archival frame, there is a large uneconomic loss of material of which the mat is made due to the cutting or punching. Furthermore, it is very difficult to easily realize a complex shape of the mat window, e.g., polygonal mat window.
In addition to the foregoing, upon trimming the mat window, the peripheral oblique edge of the mat window wears, thus resulting in an irregular thickness or obliquity thereof. This results in an adverse aesthetic influence on appearance of the frame.
Furthermore, the mat becomes large as the size of the associated artwork increases, and such a large mat makes the frame heavy and inconvenient for carriage and maintenance thereof.
The conventional mat made of a plate of timber or pasteboard has a rough surface, and accordingly, not only the portion of the artwork with which the mat is brought into press-contact is damaged by the rough surface, but also the aging in chemical property of paints painted on the surface of the mat or an adhesive immersed into the mat occurs, thus resulting in a discolored or faded artwork.
The primary object of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks mentioned above by providing a light, simple and easily portable and maintainable mat for a frame, in which no damage of an artwork mounted in the frame takes place, and which can be easily formed into any complex shapes depending on the artwork with a least loss of material.